had the whole of Acadia to himself, so to speak, and
what with fishing, fur-trading, and farming, had greatly increased his
substance.

But now rumours of a rival came to disturb his peace. Another Charles,
who was generally known as Charnace, had obtained from the French King
certain grants and privileges in Acadia, and, wrath at finding La Tour
already monopolizing the country, he let it be known that he proposed
to contest the field with him by force of arms.

He chose his time well for the attack upon Fort La Tour, coming when
the stock of provisions were lowest, the garrison smallest, and those
whose support could be counted upon were most widely scattered, and he
brought with him a strong force of soldiers in his four staunch vessels.

Stationing his two ships and the galiot so that they blockaded the ship
channels, and the pinnace to the north-east of Partridge Island, he
landed several hundred men so as to control the surrounding country,
and then settled down for a siege, feeling quite confident that the
capitulation of the fort was only a question of time.

In the meantime the commander of Fort La Tour had not been idle,
although the coming of Charnace had been like a bolt out of the blue,
for he did not expect to see anything of him that year. He lost no
time in making preparations for a determined defence, in which his
stout-hearted wife gave him efficient help. By means of spies, he got
full information as to his enemy's purpose, and laughed grimly at the
latter's threats.

"And so he has vowed that he will send me back to France in manacles,
has he? Well, words are cheap. It is easy to indulge in big talk, but
not always so easy to put it into deeds. We shall see how Monsieur
Charnace will keep his word."

Raoul was not at all dismayed at being besieged. On the contrary, he
was pleased by the prospect of exciting times, and promised himself to
take as active a part in the defence as his uncle would permit.

"What right has Charnace coming here to attack us?" he asked with fine
indignation at the insolence of the intruder. "We were here first, and
he has no business interfering. We must give him such a beating that
he will not dare to come near us again."

Keeping his ships well out of range of the cannon at the fort, and his
men safely disposed in the protection of the woods, Charnace sought to
cut off all supplies by sea or land, and thus let slow starvation win
the day for him. Now La